I was having a conversation yesterday with a pastor who I’ve become very good friends with and we were talking about Eternity. And he said something very strange in the middle of our conversation. He said: “Marc, are you going to ask them to go and get new friends?”

To tell you the truth, that question was probably one of the best questions I’ve ever heard anyone ask and it floored me. Because when I thought about it, I began to realize how insightful he was.

You see, when a church is growing, it’s because new people are being folded in to an already existing community. Existing friends are asking new friends to come and be a part of a covenant body of believers and to share life with them.

However, when a church stagnates or “turns inward” as I’ve heard a lot here recently, it’s because collectively that community has decided that it has enough friends. It has enough people that it is doing life with. No one else is needed or no one else is welcome. I have all the friends I want and all my needs are met. No need to invite anyone else in. I’m just fine thank you.

As I pondered that, I realized how related our ability to make new friends is and how readily the Gospel will advance. I realized that if we are people who do not make friends easily or engage other people easily, then the Gospel’s advance will slow rapidly. That has to be the case because the number of connections that I am making with other human beings is lower therefore my chances of transferring the Gospel into their lives is lower.

But the flip side is also true. If we are a people who make friends easily. Who invite people into community all the time. Who entertain people at our homes constantly. Who are hanging out with people incessantly. Who are curious about new folks and their stories incurably, then the Gospel will advance rapidly. Then the Gospel will begin to spread like a blaze.

So I guess the question is: Who in your life would you consider to be friends that you have made in the last year? How many new friends are you attempting to make now? How many people that you didn’t know yesterday are you wanting to know tomorrow?